Cleats, Climbs, and Cowboys: A Benson Bike Ride to Remember
- Terrence McLean
- Mar 9
- 2 min read
March 09, 2025 - 65 miles, 3900 ft elevation, Tucson AZ to Benson AZ
Nice to have an off day before 8 consecutive days of riding.
Unlike the previous 5 days of riding, we went off as a group of 14 and stayed together for the 11 miles and 1000 ft climb to reach Saguaro National Forest. On the way, my cleat was not coming out which is the kind of thing that results in me going down when approaching a stop. We stopped at the entrance to Saguaro and realized that I was missing one of the three screws. Tightening the two remaining did the trick for the rest of the day.
We cannot stop at every place along the ride across the US but Saguaro was definitely worth it. We entered the national park and did a really fun hilly 8-mile loop around Saguaro.
Most of the next 40 miles was quite the grind with lots of headwind. We had a beautiful descent with tailwind for about 5 miles which was a welcome respite in the middle. Unfortunately, we had our second interstate highway, I-10, to ride for 10 miles. Tons of debris and half a mile before the I-10 exit, I got my second flat of the trip, this time the more common rear wheel. The group of 4 stopped and Steve helped get the stubborn Continental tire off. Doug had a nifty mini-electric air pump instead of the old school CO2 cartridges, have to get one of those!
After the interstate exit, we had an amazing 5-mile windy, fun descent into the booming metropolis of Benson, AZ. To our surprise, we had a fantastic dinner at Horse Shoe Cafe, which was bustling with families and cowboys. Great end to a good day!
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